Tim Timmons will perform for Family Worship on Friday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m.

When Jessyka Albert, Union College’s Union for Christ director watched Tim Timmons’ testimony, she knew she had to bring him to Union. “He has such a great outlook on life and spirituality,” says Albert, “Just listening to his testimony was encouraging. That’s why I wanted to bring him for Family Worship.”

On Thursday night, October 16, College View Church's Heartland Hall will be transformed. Each year, the Good Neighbor Community Center holds the Samples of the World fundraiser—giving the city of Lincoln a chance to experience the sights, sounds and tastes of a wide variety of countries and support the work of the center. But behind the food and fun, Union College students provided the vital support needed to make the event a reality.

For many, career fairs conjure up images from high school of walking through rows of decorated booths as and overwhelming number of recruiters handed out free pens and brochures. But when Steven Foster attended the Union College Career Fair last fall, he discovered that finding an internship or a job is all about networking. And a career fair is a great place to network.

When the economy fell into recession, national unemployment grew from 5.0% in 2008 to 9.7% in 2010 (see here). Suddenly college graduates with large loans were competing for high school students' summer jobs and people began to wonder if a college education was still relevant. Here are five important things to consider.

Guila Medrana (left) and Miletzi Valero (right) both visited Union College during October 2014 Preview Days and were kind enough to answer questions about their hopes and college concerns.

When deciding where you're going to spend the next four years of your life, it's important to visit the top 2-3 campuses to see which one really is the best fit.

At Union, we offer opportunities for guests to become Union students during our Preview Days weekends, where they participate in the campus's social, academic and spiritual events. Two such visitors from this weekend shared their perspective and advice for high school students.

Being a parent of a college freshman can be overwhelming. There’s a weight in your throat and heart when you drop off your child to college for the first time. You’re left hoping that you made the right decision in which school to entrust your most precious treasure. You want to make sure your child can get a job, pay back any student loans and grow into a thriving adult. Afterall, this educational environment will help dictate what type of person this child will be for the rest of his or her life.

The Union College Invitational Volleyball Tournament will be held Oct. 16-18.

Women’s high school volleyball teams from around the country will soon gather at Union College on the weekend of October 16-18 for the annual Union College Invitational Volleyball Tournament 2014. Formerly known as the Mid-America Union Volleyball Tournament, the 2014 tournament will continue the seeded pool play format adopted in last year's event.

Jan Paulsen, former president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, will speak at Union College on Oct. 3-4.

UPDATE: due to flight delays, Dr. Paulsen will not make it to vespers on Friday night.

Dr. Jan Paulsen, former president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, will speak at Union College for Family Worship on Oct. 3 and give a sermon titled “Whatever Happens, it will be Okay,” for both services on Oct. 4 at the College View Seventh-day Adventist Church.

Olympic gold medalist Curtis Tomasevicz will speak for the Union College Leadership Symposium on Oct. 21.

As a Cornhusker linebacker, Nebraska native Curtis Tomasevicz faced barreling lineman nearly twice his size. But that’s nothing compared to hurtling down the side of a cliff at 90 mph with nothing to protect you but a tin can. “Bobsledding is kind of scary,” he said. “When you look over that cliff, you can’t see more than 50 meters in front of you.”

Union College graduate Dr. Sam Shum will talk about his role in the development of inhalable insulin.

For most asthma sufferers, an inhaler is a vital, often life-saving device designed to deliver much-needed medicine to lungs gasping for air. But Sam Shum, who developed a passion for chemistry and research while an undergraduate student at Union College, knew inhalers could be a lot more.

“We received nonstop phone calls begging us for help,” said Laila Khoudeida, a Lincoln woman whose Yazidi family immigrated to the U.S. when she was 12. “I cannot sit around and do nothing about what they are telling me.”

The Yazidi are a group of Kurdish-speaking people who live largely in northern Iraq. In early August, President Obama drew attention to the slaughter and persecution of Yazidis by ISIL in Iraq when he authorized food drops and air strikes to help save a UN estimated 40,000 people trapped on Mount Sinjar.

Nicole Orian, chair of the Union College Division of Nursing, recently received the "40 under 40" award from the Nebraska Action Coalition.

Nicole Orian, chair of the Division of Nursing, was honored as one of the “40 Under 40” by the Nebraska Action Coalition. This award honors 40 emerging nurse leaders in the state of Nebraska under the age of 40. A celebration of the nurse leaders was held in Union College’s Woods Auditorium on the evening of Thursday, September 18.

David Deemer, a junior biomedical science major, struggled to cope with all the demands of school and personal life. But thanks to the advice and friendship of dedicated professors and staff at Union College, David learned to live a balanced and successful life.

The annual library fair will commemorate the start of World War I this year. For those of you new to Union College and unfamiliar with the annual library fair tradition, this is an open house event to which students, faculty, staff, and friends are invited to visit the library, enjoy food, experience learning activities, and perhaps win prizes while learning more about the library. This fall's fair will take place on September 18, 2014 from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Even though she's not new to Project Impact, Elena Cornwell (center), along with Enrique Quezada, Erika Meza, Tylar Bissell, Shannice Baker and Tyler Underwood, learn something new every year.

It was cold. Really cold. So cold that when I rinsed my hands after eating my donut, they tingled under the water. But I didn’t even question why I was outside at 7:30 on a Thursday instead of snuggled comfortably in my bed. The day is all about serving others. Project Impact would not be put off by a bit of chilly weather.

Duma Figueroa paints the walls of Club EDEFY at People's City Mission during Project Impact 2013.

“It’s incredible to watch the amount of people that come to serve each year,” said Inonge Kasaji, the 2014 Project Impact coordinator. “Nobody ever walks away from Project Impact saying, ‘Those were the worst four hours of my life.’ Students volunteer each year because they want to connect; with each other, their community, and really do something good for others. That’s how is should be all the time.”

Brad Carlson and a team of faculty and students are currently researching a way to dramatically decrease the cost and increase the accuracy of detecting breast cancer. Thanks to Union College alumni and friends, the new Krueger Center for Science and Mathematics provides the space and the tools needed for their work.

Andreas Beccai, youth pastor for the Green Lake Church in Seattle, will speak for family worship on Friday, Aug. 29.

Pastor Andreas Beccai will kick off the 2014-15 schedule of Friday evening “Family Worship” services tonight at 7:30 p.m. in the sanctuary of the College View Church.

Beccai is the youth pastor at Green Lake Church, a Seventh-day Adventist community in Seattle, Wash. Although he speaks with a British lilt, his roots reach back to Accra, Ghana, the land of his birth. Living much of his life in countries where he is an ethnic minority, he has developed a passion for helping youth forge diverse networks of relationships.